A wire mill was established in Stocksbridge, Sheffield as early as 1833 and was acquired by Samuel Fox in 1851. Under his leadership, the business expanded rapidly.
In 1852 Fox took out a patent for 'Paragon' umbrella frames - a steel rib and stretcher with a 'U' section formed from flattened wire. This frame, invented by a Fox employee, was both light and strong and proved to be one of the early foundations of the firm’s prosperity.
Innovations continued, and in 1854 Fox became one of the first producers to cold roll strip from wire. Fox then decided to integrate production upstream into steelmaking and the first steel was made in 1860, allowing entry into the vastly expanding railway market. Investment in steelmaking continued over the next few decades during which time he formed the Stocksbridge Railway Co in 1874.
Samuel Fox died in 1887 leaving behind a successful company which continued to develop and prosper.
In 1918 the Samuel Fox mill and Steel Peach and Tozer combined to make United Steels Co and in 1920 the first stainless steel wire, for which the company was to become famous, was produced at the Stocksbridge site.
In 1963 the new wire mill set opened at its current location at Sheephouse Wood. It was further expanded in 1972 following the nationalisation of the British steel industry in 1967. The business remained part of British Steel until privatisation, and the company was re named Fox Wire Limited in 1985.
In 1987 Fox Wire was bought by Tinsley Wire Industries before being acquired in 1989 by Bridon (part of FKI plc) operating under the Bridon Stocksbridge name.
In 2007 the business regained its independence as a privately owned company and resumed its historic title of ‘Fox Wire’.
